Canada’s nuclear facilities are secure, industry experts tell MPs

Witnesses from the Canadian Nuclear Association, Bruce Power, and Ontario Power Generation all said Thursday that Canada’s nuclear facilities are secure, and that natural disasters — including earthquakes — have been factored in to emergency plans.

The tenuous situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan garnered the attention of the natural resources committee.

Denise Carpenter of the CNA assured the committee that Canada’s nuclear industry is continually improving and that following the earthquake and reactor damage in Japan, there has been a full safety review ordered at all of Canada’s nuclear power plants.

Duncan Hawthorne of Bruce Power described what happened in Japan at length, and noted to the committee that plants in Ontario are built to withstand an earthquake up to a 6.5 magnitude. That, he said, was within the realm of reasonable predicted seismic activity in this part of the world.

Hawthorne also noted that the massive power outage that hit Ontario and the Northeastern United States in 2003 provided the Canadian nuclear industry with a good test of emergency equipment. At that time, emergency backup systems supported themselves for 72 hours, and Canadians ought to take comfort from that, he said.

The witnesses were also present to tout the potential benefits of further investment in nuclear energy. However, Professor Mark Cooper of the University of Iowa warned the committee by teleconference that cost projections for nuclear plant development have been inaccurate in the past decade. Given that nuclear plants are large and take a long time to build, they are susceptible to both policy and economic changes.

Cooper also noted that a disaster such as the one in Japan also makes nuclear projects more expensive, given the higher interest in safety that might cause plans to change. More disasters means higher cost, he said.

Exchange of the day:

Assuming the looming election does indeed take place, it will mark the end of this version of the natural resources committee, which was a congenial one. Before leaving on Thursday, New Democrat Nathan Cullen took a minute at the end of the meeting and, after hoping that the next Parliament continue the study of energy security, he stated that he’d like to wish everyone good luck on the campaign trail.